Whether you work in business, government, or the not-for-profit sector, negotiation and consensus building are skills that LEAD identifies as key to good leadership for sustainable development. The ability to negotiate with a wide range of stakeholders in a transparent and accountable way is critical to arriving at sustainable solutions.

The core content of this module includes the Mutual Gains Approach (MGA) to negotiation and other consensus building models that can be applied in most contexts and cultures. The MGA approach seeks to eliminate some of the adversarial and unproductive patterns of behaviour that can prevent us from reaching agreement on development issues. The MGA approach is not the “nice” way to negotiate. It requires a set of highly developed skills to maximise joint gains and then distribute them fairly using agreed criteria.

BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS, UNDERSTANDING NEEDS AND INTERESTS

Effective negotiation requires a certain kind of conversation – one that is co-operative, creative, and has a positive energy that enables all the stakeholders to see and generate a range of possible options.  Through a number of interactive and challenging team exercises and simulations participants quickly learn the value building relationships and planning before entering into a negotiation. Failing to plan – as the saying goes – is planning to fail.

LEAD’s tried and tested exercises show participants the necessity of having initial conversations with all the different stakeholders in order to build trust, clarify needs and explore possible interests. Without trust, and a true understanding of the positions, needs and interests of each party, it is unlikely that the negotiators will be able to find or generate win-win solutions.  Opportunities for participants to share knowledge and experience with each other are built into the schedule. A constantly updated range of on-line learning resources including selected articles, podcasts, books and film, supports face to face learning.